If you’ve opted to store your work, or even your business data on Cloud Servers then the chances are that you’re currently patting yourself on the back for saving yourself some money.
Right now you’re probably thinking about how much it would have cost you to install a physical server into your office and to maintain it day in and day out and you’re congratulating yourself on a creative and cost-effective solution.

And so you should. But your creativity shouldn’t stop there.

Investing in a Cloud Server and Cloud Storage is about more than just saving money. Instead it can fundamentally shift how you work and how you store your data online. It helps you have control over how and where you store your data; how you can share it and have more control over your working practices. It can become the way in which you shape your business.

So here are five creative ways that you can use your Cloud Servers:

Set-up an FTP
If you don’t know what an FTP is then click on Windows Explorer. Basically that’s the principle of an FTP (file transfer protocol). If you need to download and upload files, perhaps if you work remotely or produce large files for clients – like video or high-resolution graphics – you can do it much more simply with a Cloud Server. Set-up at FTP and you can drop your files into newly created folders making them as public or as private as you like. Cloud Storage means you’re essentially saving it off-site but it makes it much easier for your clients to be able to access the material in a time that suits them.

Making it easier to work together
A Cloud Server allows you to store and organise your business data online in a separate location. The next logical step is to ask other people to join in. If collaboration is a big part of the way your work, if you’re used to bringing different individuals and specialisms into your work practice then a Cloud Server will make that much easier. Allow access, share information and remove the need for working side by side or face to face.

Tidy work, tidy mind
We all feel much better when we’re organised. Piles of papers, whether physical or virtual; finding it difficult to source information and files quickly and easily. It’s time-consuming and frustrating. A Cloud Server can help you to remove all of that clutter and streamline your information. A clear, concise organisation of files and data makes everything but easier to find. It also helps improve business communication, internally more importantly than externally. If you have documents, like training material or protocols that everyone needs to be able to read a cloud server can make it easier to access the information. Knowing you can lay your hands on any aspect of your business without a huge amount of stress removes a great deal of time-wasting.

Keep your pictures and video in one placeIncreasingly photos and video are an important part of how we project our business. It doesn’t necessarily mean we’re a photographer or video producer but in terms of communications what we’re putting there is becoming more visual. The problem with this is space. High-res video and pictures take up a lot of rom. If you’re, say a PR agency and you have six or seven clients, each with folder after folder of pictures of launches, products and videos you’re going to run out of space fast. A Cloud Server enables you to store all that data offsite, virtually. You can access it quickly and easily but it doesn’t weigh down on your storage space.

Back-up, back-up, back-up!
The truth is that hard drives are not what they used to be. If you’re using a computer hard drive and an external hard drive to store all your data you might be worried it makes you more vulnerable to loss. Increasingly people are using Cloud Servers as a new form of storage. Talking to your provider about security becomes even more important than normal but it’s a fundamental part of business to find new ways to back-up all your information. Cloud Servers do that quickly and easily.